damn, interesting morning
So I had a plan today. It sorta went well, but not as expected.
I finished putting my motorcycle back together last weekend, took it for a test drive, and promptly realized that the battery wasn't holding a charge. Tried trickle-charging it for six hours, but to no avail. Need a new battery.
The plan today, was to jump-start the bike off my car battery, and ride it over to the dealer in Mountain View to get a new battery. This in itself is a little harrowing, since, every time I came to a stop in traffic or at a stop sign, I had to turn on the choke to keep the revs up, so the bike wouldn't stall. Not a huge deal, but it's one more thing to concentrate on every time I'm preparing to slow down.
I got the bike to the dealer, and left it idling (with the choke on...REEEEE!!!!) in the parking lot while I went in to make sure they had the right battery. Once I made sure, I went out and turned the bike off to stop it from screaming. Came back in to pay for the battery, and realized I had left my wallet at home. FUUUCK.
So I went back to the service department to get a jump start so I could go home. As I was gearing up, one of the sales guys came up to me, and asked if I'd gotten what I needed, so I told him what was up. He said "oh, well here, let me just loan you the money for the battery, that way you've got one less thing to worry about on your way home, and you can come on back to repay me." I was astounded. This guy doesn't know me from Adam, he's seen me in the shop twice, but we hadn't really said more than a polite hello to each other. And he had already pulled out his wallet and was holding out more money than I'd care to admit the battery cost. Did I mention I was astounded?
I hesitantly accepted his generous offer, and assured him I'd be right back to repay him. Went in to purchase the battery, and he followed me in and said "and if you haven't got cash, you could just bring a checkbook, that'd be fine too." And, of course, I slapped my forehead and started rummaging through my bag to see if I had my checkbook. Which I did. So, I very sheepishly returned the cash to the nice gentleman, and paid for my battery (and valve cover gasket, and brake light switch) with a check. It's been so long since I've needed to write a check, I'd almost forgotten about the whole concept.
So, I went out to the parking lot, took the seat and side panels off my bike, and replaced the battery right there. Started up like a champ, cranked nice and strong. Put on my helmet and gear, and rode home extremely conservatively to get my wallet and (also-forgotten) EZ-Pass. Then headed to work, arriving 1.5 hours late. Thankfully, I had notified the boss early that I'd be delayed. Like a good little boy.
Did a few things right today. Did a few things wrong today.
I finished putting my motorcycle back together last weekend, took it for a test drive, and promptly realized that the battery wasn't holding a charge. Tried trickle-charging it for six hours, but to no avail. Need a new battery.
The plan today, was to jump-start the bike off my car battery, and ride it over to the dealer in Mountain View to get a new battery. This in itself is a little harrowing, since, every time I came to a stop in traffic or at a stop sign, I had to turn on the choke to keep the revs up, so the bike wouldn't stall. Not a huge deal, but it's one more thing to concentrate on every time I'm preparing to slow down.
I got the bike to the dealer, and left it idling (with the choke on...REEEEE!!!!) in the parking lot while I went in to make sure they had the right battery. Once I made sure, I went out and turned the bike off to stop it from screaming. Came back in to pay for the battery, and realized I had left my wallet at home. FUUUCK.
So I went back to the service department to get a jump start so I could go home. As I was gearing up, one of the sales guys came up to me, and asked if I'd gotten what I needed, so I told him what was up. He said "oh, well here, let me just loan you the money for the battery, that way you've got one less thing to worry about on your way home, and you can come on back to repay me." I was astounded. This guy doesn't know me from Adam, he's seen me in the shop twice, but we hadn't really said more than a polite hello to each other. And he had already pulled out his wallet and was holding out more money than I'd care to admit the battery cost. Did I mention I was astounded?
I hesitantly accepted his generous offer, and assured him I'd be right back to repay him. Went in to purchase the battery, and he followed me in and said "and if you haven't got cash, you could just bring a checkbook, that'd be fine too." And, of course, I slapped my forehead and started rummaging through my bag to see if I had my checkbook. Which I did. So, I very sheepishly returned the cash to the nice gentleman, and paid for my battery (and valve cover gasket, and brake light switch) with a check. It's been so long since I've needed to write a check, I'd almost forgotten about the whole concept.
So, I went out to the parking lot, took the seat and side panels off my bike, and replaced the battery right there. Started up like a champ, cranked nice and strong. Put on my helmet and gear, and rode home extremely conservatively to get my wallet and (also-forgotten) EZ-Pass. Then headed to work, arriving 1.5 hours late. Thankfully, I had notified the boss early that I'd be delayed. Like a good little boy.
Did a few things right today. Did a few things wrong today.